Michi speaks to miss Edie with a serious face.
I don’t understand since it’s english.
「『Sex is something that must be done by men and women who truly trust and love each other』She’s saying…!」
Nei-san translates Michi’s words.
Miss Edie looks at me with a surprised face.
Then, she asked Michi.
I can tell it even with my poor English ability
In short…she’s asking《Is he your husband?》
《NO……He is my Master！》
Masuta?…Oh『Master』
They continue to talk in fluent English
「Mi-chan says『He’s the person I have decided to dedicate my life to serve. Master has accepted me like that』」
The smile from miss Edie’s face disappears due to Michi’s serious attitude.
《sorry…》
Miss Edie apologized to Michi
「『I’m sorry for making a selfish offer even though I don’t know your relationship』the girl’s apologizing」
What…miss Edie?
Is 『Master』and『Serve with whole life』a problem for her?
Well, she’s a girl who grew up from a mysterious assassination cult so her common sense is different from us, but.
Miss Edie asks Nei-san this time.
「You see…she’s asking my relationship with Mi-chan」
The milky blonde hair and brown skinned『assassin』beauty…
She came to us interested only with Michi.
Now that she’s promised to be friends with Michi…she’s gotten interested and Nei-san and I too.
「《We are『Family』》…Or rather, it’s different in this case. It might be easier to say it’s《sisterhood》」
「What’s『Sister hood』?」
I asked unintentionally
「If you translate it directly, it would mean『sister group』…but for Christian with a spirit of fraternity, as soon as you reach a close relationship, you call each other『Brothers』 『Hey, brother』or something like that」
Oh, I’ve seen those in movies.
「Then you see, the organization that has『everyone treats each other like brothers even though there’s no blood relation』is called『Brotherhood』1 The females version would be『sisterhood』」
Yeah, that’s how our Kuromori family feels like.
We’re not a 『family』connected by blood but we trust each other and unite.
「Or rather…Nei-san made the group named『sister’s association』before, didn’t you?」
「Yeah. That’s actually referring to the『sisterhood』from the foreign countries. Ah, the『sister’s association』is still alive. Mi-chan, join in too」
「…What is it?」
Michi turns to Nei-san.
「There’s a『sister’s association』of women who love Yo-chan. The members are, Katsun, Nagisa-san, me, Mii-chan, Megu-chan and Mana-chan. The enrollment condition is that you love Yo-chan. There’s no annual fee so don’t worry…」
「If Misuzu-sama is a member then I will join in as well」
Michi replies immediately
「Okay!」
Miss Edie looks at Michi and Nei-san and asks something like『what are you talking about』?
Nei-san answered…『We’re a sisterhood』
I somehow figured that hout.
Miss Edie asks Nei-san『Are you her sister?』
「Mi-chan…I can be Mi-chan’s onee-san?」
Michi look sat me who’s her master.
「Nei-san is my Onee-san. Therefore, Michi should think of Nei-san as her own sister too」
「Yes…Master」
Michi looks at Nei-san once again…
「I may be an inexperienced『sister』but please guide me…!」
With this, Michi officially becomes Nei-san’s『little sister』…
Yeah, these two’s relationship is subtle so I hope they get along after this.
Miss Edie speaks to Michi again
…She’s looking at Yukino?
「What’s up?」
「You see…she’s asking if Yukino-san is also a sister? Mi-chan denied it. Then, she asked『What kind of relationship they have?』Mi-chan answered『I don’t know well』」
True…Yukino’s not in『family』nor『sister’s association』
Far from her relationship with Nei-san and Michi…
Even her relationship with me is unknown.
「『But, isn’t she very intimate with your《Master》?』Edie said,『But, I don’t know what I don’t know』Mi-chan answered『That’s a bit worrying then』Edie comforts her…」
Hmm…Somehow, I’m sorry for a lot of things.
Even I don’t know what kind of judgement should I make for Yukino…it’s hopeless as of present.
What’s an『腐れ縁』…in English?2
「Edie’s asking Mi-chan if she can call her『Sister』too」
…What?
「Since she’s going to be a practice companion…she would like to call her sister by all means. Well, I think she’s just expressing her affection」
「Master…?」
「If Michi’s fine with it I don’t mind?」
Michi smiles…
『Got it, I will be calling you sister Michi from now on. You can call me Sister Edie too』is what they’re saying…I think
Miss Edie looks at me and Nei-san
「『If you’re my sister’s elder sister, then you’re my elder sister too』but…she’s saying that Yo-chan won’t be her master」
Nei-san explains
Well…even if she’s Michi’s sister, it’s not that she’s entered our『family』
In the first place…I’d be troubled if a girl I just met calls me『Master』
「『But, since you are sister Michi’s master I pay you the utmost respect』she said…!」
「What does she mean by that…?」
Nei-san talks to miss Edie.
「She promised to protect us from miss Cordelia’s pursuit」
Oh…inside miss Edie’s head…
Becoming friends with Michi and and saving all of us with Michi from a crisis is a different thing until now…
Michi has the same power as herself so she thinks that she can naturally survive miss Cordelia’s attack.
Whatever happens to us who are with her…is something she’s not particularly interested in.
「Perhaps…the word sisterhood moved Edie’s heart」
Nei-san tells me.
「I think that the idea of『brotherhood』also existed in the assassination cult she belonged to. I can’t say that everyone in the organization must help each other’s『brother』but; Yo-chan and I are special existence to her new sister Mi-chan…Edie thinks of us as people to protect」
Well, that’s thankful but…
What about Yukino then?
From what Michi has shown to Edie…it has become clear that she doesn’t think anything about Yukino…
「Michi…tell her to help Yukino too」
「…Master」
Michi looks a bit unpleasant.
Yukino stares at me.
「Won’t it leave bad taste in your mouth if only Yukino dies?」
「…Yes」
Michi tells miss Edie something
《OK…I see.》
Miss Edie’s convinced.
「What did you say?」
「She’s an important livestock of master so we don’t want her to die…」
「Hey, what livestock!」
Yukino rejects.
「Please realize that right now, you’re living right now because Master is fond of you…!」
Michi said coldly.
「You could’ve been left with Kouzuki Kenshi-san in that place. Realize that…!」
Seriously…why is all my『women』so harsh with Yukino?
Well…I can understand their feelings however.
「Anyway…you’re livestock. Lower than a pet. If you aren’t quiet then you’ll be punished by a whip in your big ass…do you understand!!」
Michi who’s calm on everything, hates to expose her emotions…doesn’t hide her expression of anger against Yukino.
MIss Edie laughs as she look at Michi.
She really thinks of Michi as her friend.
With the small bout earlier…miss Edie also knows that Michi is a reliable partner.
She’s completely opening up her heart.
Or rather, this girl doesn’t feel any guilt about betraying miss Cordelia…
She’s completely resolute.
This way of thinking must be truly American.
「With that done…we should have Edie meet up with Maru-chan and Seki-san sooner」
Nei-san said
「It’s unknown how far does Edie know about miss Cordelia’s plan but she’s supposed to have received some instructions」
I see…we can understand the『enemy』movements
「I won’t understand it even if I ask but…Maru-chan and Seki-san would discover some hints even if Edie talks only a little」
Wait…what about Reika?
Thinking about it…
Reika’s a pure combat person…
Only Margo-san and Seki-san can take troop commands and strategy planning
「Sink or swim…we’ve got to make the call」
Nei-san and Michi takes out their communication devices.
Mine’s…left on the stage along with my jacket
…But
Looking at this…I think it was a big mistake of miss Cordelia to not take away the communication device and Michi’s weapon form us.
She underestimated us…or rather, she thought that she has the absolute superiority that she had the composure…
But, this communication device’s conversation is definitely intercepted.
What does Nei-san intend to do?
◇ ◇ ◇
「Master, here」
Michi beckons me.
She huddles with me so we can both listen on one earphone.
「Please come closer」
…I mean, Michi’s small so;
I embraced her.
「Ah…」
「Do you not like it, Michi?」
「No…rather I’m glad」
Michi said blushing, miss Edie said something with a smile
「What?」
「She’s making fun of us」
Michi said embarrassed
「Well then, let’s go!」
Nei-san puts on spirit and pressed the switch of the communication device.
「Checkmate King 2, Checkmate King 2…This is white rook. Please respond…!」
A reply comes immediately
『…There’s no checkmate king 2. Over』
Margo-san’s voice…!
「Yeah, I was lying…we don’t have white rook either, Over」
Nei-san replies.
「This is an ace of hearts blackjack. The old maid is secretly hidden…Over!」
That’s right…we have decided this before leaving the underground room.
We had completely forgotten bit due to the slapstick on the upper floor…
Margo-san is『Spades』, Seki-san is『Diamond』, Michi is『Heart』Nei-san is『Ace』, I’m『Joker』and Yukino’s the『Old maid』
In short, Nei-san and Michi is『Ace of Hearts』and the『joker』me is the 21 Black Jack
In addition, the『old main』…Yukino’s safety is transmitted.
『Huh…What about the 『Bonus』sweets? Over』
「We’ve left the『bonus』somewhere. It’s possible that it’s picked up by someone else…Over」
Nei-san tells Margo-san that Kouzuki Kenshi’s separated from us.
『Is that so, too bad. We’ve dealt the first card. There’s nothing played yet…Over』
In short, there was no one pursued Margo-san afterwards.
『But, we still have『ace of diamonds』『Clover 10』and 『2 of spades』at hand…you’ve got to draw a card. Over』
Wait…what’s this about now?
「One ace and 『10』card, and『2』card」, it means 『23』or『13』 In this case, 『13 』is impossible so she’s ordering Margo-oneesama to go to the 23rd floor」
Michi explains
「We’ve got the black jack for good and bad…Over」
Nei-san said.
In short…us black jack are in the 21st floor.
『What about Tiger Lily? Over』
「Yeah, we managed to come out of the tiger’s nest hole. But, they’re still trying to get us. I think they’re chasing our footprints…over!」
『But I’m glad that you escaped Tiger Lily. Over』
「Well, I feel sorry for the extra being left but…I hope the tiger hasn’t eaten it. Over」
She’s indirectly telling that we escaped from miss Corderlia’s hands.
『It can’t be helped, the other party is a savage tiger…I just think that we’re lucky to be able to communicate like this. Over』
「Right…by the way, tiger lily has removed her mask and her makeup was so thick. Isn’t it a pain to coat it all? Over」
『Don’t say that. Her skin’s got a lot of bends so isn’t she worried about lots of things? Over』
「Speaking of which, I feel like her tits are sagging… Over」
Knowing that miss Cordelia is intercepting…both of them are provoking her saying everything they want.
「From south『Futon room』…wc-2123…Over」
Michi enters the conversation
『Roger…Over』
Seki-san replied
Michi looks at me.
「『Futon room』is the secret word for Kouzuki security service, referring to the escape room for the VIPs. Miss Cordelia probably doesn’t know the word『Futon Room』…」
Yeah…a genuine American won’t know the『Futon room』
「What’s south, and the number after that though?」
「It’s all fakes. There’s only one VIP shelter on this floor. And this room is on the east side of the floor」
I see…those were remarks to confuse the enemy.
Sasuga Michi.
『Does ace of hearts have experience in evac training? Over』
Seki-san asks Michi
「I’ve read the books, Over.」
『Do you know how to use the emergency slow descent machine, Over?』
「Of course, Over」
『Slow descent machine』…must be that
It’s often placed at the corner of the hallways like schools or department stores so you can get off from a high place while evacuating.
『Oriro』or『Surodan』3」
But…this is the 21st floor
Isn’t it le to get off ground from this height?
『I feel bad since we got blackjack but could you draw another card? Over』
Seki-san said.
『If ace and Joker are black jack, you can still draw cards can’t you? Don’t go down but instead increase your stakes. Over』
「I’ll draw another…Over」
Michi confirms
『Yes, please try it…Over』
Seki-san said
『Okay, let’s end the talk here. Let’s contact each other regularly every 30 minutes…good? Over』
Margo-san’s voice.
「Roger…Over」
Lastly, Nei-san ended the conversation.
◇ ◇ ◇
「They didn’t decide to interrupt the conversation like before…」
I said, Nei-san;
「She’s ashamed…Yazawa-san is also listening to the talk」
I see, she doesn’t want to tell chief Yazawa that we were able to escape from her.
「Of course, chief Yazawa already knows that we escaped but still…her pride won’t allow her to publicize it herself」
…I see.
「By the way…why didn’t you tell Margo-san and others about miss Edie?」
「It’s connected to miss Cordelia…that person only thinks that miss Edie escaped」
Nei-san said
「She doesn’t think that she was excited to see Michan’s technique and came to be friends with Michan…」
Yeah…that’s true
Even we are surprised.
「Edie just happened to see the chance to escape from miss Cordelia so she did…that’s all she thinks」
Miss Cordelia doesn’t understand miss Edie at all.
「Therefore, let’s hide the fact that this girl is with us for a bit longer」
…True
「By the way, what was Michan talking with Seki-san?」
I also want to know
「Yes…I’ve received instructions where to meet」
…Meet?
「It’s on the 22nd floor…」
「What do you mean, Michi?」
「In black jack state…she ordered me to draw one more card. In short, 21+1=22nd floor」4
「But, how do we go up?」
If we go out…miss Cordelia will find us.
In order to get out of the maze-like hotel through the upper floor…we definitely have to go through surveillance cameras.
「This VIP room is on the same position on each floor」
What…Michi?
「And…there’s a secret hatch that connects the top and bottom of each floor.」
…It’s connected?
「Though we can evacuate the VIPs into this room…it’s troublesome to stay in the same room. 「Unlike the emergency evacuation room dedicated to『Kakka』in the basement, the food and clothing here aren’t stockpiled enough. Therefore, there’s a system that can move from this room above or under. Of course, even among Kouzuki security service, only full time guards of the VIPs knows it」
Michi is Misuzu’s guard so she knows.
「Seki-sama said 『Don’t go down but instead increase the stakes』 In short, don’t go down but move on the upper floor instead
From the 21st floor evacuation shelter…to the evacuation shelter of the 22nd floor.
「And, the equipment to move from the upper and lower floor is…」
Michi moves the stockpiled lockers and shows the box placed behind the pillar.
「It’s a slow descent machine…!」
The box has『Slow Oriro』written on it